Mobile computing devices (e.g. mobile phones, tablets, laptop computers, etc.) are usually provided with a plurality of connection options which allow the devices to communicate with other devices electronically, or to receive or supply energy to the other devices (including obtaining energy from a power supply), or to add functionality to the device, such as to connect the device to a peripheral device (e.g. a keyboard, a mouse, speakers, etc.).
Generally, spatial awareness is the ability (e.g. for a device) to be spatially aware and have knowledge of one more spatial features (e.g. location, orientation, etc.) of other devices in relation to the device. This spatial awareness can be used to facilitate input gestures that span across multiple devices or the stitching of multiple displays to create larger displays. Spatial awareness also involves understanding the relationship of these interconnected devices when there is a change of position relative to the device.
Current methods for assessing spatial awareness may rely on an external camera to detect the spatial relationships between devices. These solutions are complex, need specialized environments and often rely on external devices such as cameras and/or sensors. Such solutions can be an impediment to the usability of the mobile computing device as they require external devices and/or specialized environments which are inhibiting for users who wish to easily interconnect their devices to one another while allowing spatial awareness of the interconnected devices.
In other methods, location information (e.g. GPS coordinates and wireless signal strength) can be used to detect when devices are located near one another but the information is often not sufficiently accurate to determine relative spatial locations of devices that are located near one another.
Accordingly, there exists a need for new methods and/or devices that can detect spatial relationships between connected mobile devices.